Imagine, Live, Love
by Aleena
Summary: *CHAPTER THREE NOW UP* A H/G romance, from Ginny's point of view. Begins in the holidays after Harry's fourth year. Rated PG for what might happen in later chapters.
1. Surprise Visitor

"Ginny

Disclaimer: All characters, places, etc, belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling. Basically, if you recognise it, it's not mine, it's hers. 

This story begins in the holidays after Harry's fourth and Ginny's third year. The action begins at The Burrow, and is from Ginny's POV. This is my first Harry Potter fanfic, so please, be gentle.

Chapter One- Surprise Visitor

"Ginny! Breakfast!" 

Ginny tucked her diary under her mattress and got to her feet in response to her mother's call. She ran her fingers through her long, fiery curls and opened her bedroom door. 

"Breakfast!" Mrs Weasley called again.

"I'm coming, Mum!" Ginny called back. She ran down the stairs, opened the kitchen door and stopped short. 

Seated at the kitchen table, along with Ron, Mr Weasley and the twins, Fred and George, was a person Ginny knew very, very well. It was a person she thought of often, and every day of these summer holidays she'd considered sending him an owl- but she never could gather the courage to actually send the many notes and letters she'd written. The best she had been able to do was to sign her name on the card Ron had sent for his fifteenth birthday.

Harry Potter.

Harry glanced up as the door opened and smiled at Ginny warmly, his green eyes bright under a shock of untidy black hair. She tried to smile back, but it didn't come out very well and she felt her face turn scarlet. She was infinitely grateful for the fact that she had dressed before coming downstairs. 

"Isn't it wonderful, Ginny?" Mrs Weasley bustled around the table, setting down bowls of steaming porridge. "Dumbledore said it was all right for Harry to come to us at last. He arrived last night on the Knight Bus, and he'll be staying with us for two weeks- until school goes back!"

"Hello, Ginny," Harry said.

"Hello," Ginny muttered, taking her seat next to George. George gave her a sidelong grin, but she ignored him and picked up her spoon. As the rest of the family set about eating their breakfast, she glanced across the table at Harry. He looked tired, but he'd lost the dead look he'd had in his eyes at the end of last year, after Cedric was killed and Voldemort returned. He looked happy, sitting at the old table with her family surrounding him. Voldemort had not resurfaced since that night, and she supposed some of his worry had faded.

Harry glanced up and caught her watching him. He smiled, but Ginny blushed again and quickly looked down at her bowl. It was ridiculous, the way her face turned bright red whenever Harry looked at or spoke to her. It had been like this since his first visit to the Burrow, right before Ginny started at Hogwarts- but she'd been fascinated by him long before that. She remembered the first time she'd seen him, at King's Cross Station…

"Ginny!" Ron said, breaking into her thoughts. Ginny jumped, and spilt some porridge. 

"What?" she said, annoyed at herself for appearing so clumsy yet again.

"I've been trying to get your attention for the last minute," Ron said. "What were you doing, daydreaming?"

"Yeah, off with the pixies again, eh Gin?" Fred grinned. "You know, they say that's a very bad sign-"

"Fred!" Mrs Weasley said sharply. 

"Sorry, Mum, I forgot that you're susceptible to these attacks of daydreaming too…"

George snorted with laughter. 

"Yeah, old Gilderoy Lockhart looks pretty good in daydreams, doesn't he Mum?"

"BOYS!" Mrs Weasley shouted, causing Mr Weasley to drop the _Daily Prophet. _"That's enough!" Rather pink in the face, she got up from the table and began gathering the empty bowls. 

"Anyway, Gin," Ron went on, "We thought we'd do some flying after breakfast. You can come too, if you like?"

"Maybe," Ginny murmured, accepting a piece of toast from her mother. She was glad to be included, but she wasn't exactly what you could call a wonderful flier and she wasn't anxious to be humiliated in front of Harry yet again. 

"Oh, come on," Harry said encouragingly. "It'll be fun. You can have a go on my Firebolt, if you want."

Ginny nodded, not meeting Harry's eyes. 

***

After breakfast, Ron, Harry, Ginny and the twins headed outside. Everyone except Ginny carried a broomstick over their shoulders. Harry, she noticed, looked ecstatic to be outside with the prospect of flying ahead of him. She knew his life with those Muggles- the Dursleys- wasn't much fun. 

"Where's Percy?" Harry asked as they all trudged along through the sweet-smelling summer air.

"Oh, he's visiting Penelope," George said, setting his broomstick down his broomstick. "We can't actually believe he's taking time of work to go see her, but I guess she got sick of getting letters and told him he had to go." 

Fred sniggered. 

"Mum's expecting an engagement announcement any time, but I can't see old Perce making any decisions like that in the near future. You know Percy." he said.

Soon, the boys had kicked off from the ground and were zooming through the air. Harry's Firebolt far outstripped the other brooms- he was like a streak of lightening, flashing about and catching the apples the other threw to him. Ginny sat on the grass, watching, her mind elsewhere. More than anything she wanted to tell Harry how she felt. To tell him that it wasn't a silly little hero-worship crush, but something far deeper.

But how could she tell him? To Harry, she was just Ron's little sister. Even when he had saved her in the Chamber of Secrets, it had meant nothing to him in _that _way. She shuddered, forcing away the memory of Tom Riddle emerging from the diary. It still filled her with fear. She'd only been able to start writing in a diary again in the last year. 

Besides, she thought, her mind on Harry again, it was obvious that he was interested in Cho Chang, the pretty, smart, Ravenclaw Seeker. Though perhaps that would fade a bit now, for Cho wasn't going to get over Cedric in a hurry…

"Why would he like me, anyway?" she muttered angrily, pulling at the grass with one hand. 

She was startled when Harry landed beside her, his face flushed with excitement and his eyes shining. The others were still in the air. Fred and George were chasing Ron, pelting small pebbles at him.

"It's so good to get back on a broomstick again!" he said, breathing heavily as he flopped down on the grass beside Ginny, sitting so close that her side tingled. "I've missed it so much."

Ginny nodded, unable to speak.

"Looking forwards to your fourth year at Hogwarts?" he asked, running his fingers through his hair and causing it to stick out in all directions. She had an urge to smooth it for him, but resisted. 

"Yes," she said, finding her voice. "It'll be good to get back- though I do like being at home."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Your house in great," Harry said, glancing over at The Burrow. "I wish I could live here."

"It isn't all that fun, living with the Muggles, is it?" Ginny was amazed. She was actually having a normal conversation with Harry Potter, without acting like a fool! 

"No, it's not," Harry said. "The Dursleys don't like me much. They never have." He changed the subject abruptly. "Do you want a go on my broom, then?"

"All right." Ginny started to get to her feet, and Harry took her hand to help her. Tingles shot up her arm and she busied herself brushing grass from her clothes. Harry handed her the Firebolt, and she mounted and kicked off from the grass. 

She gasped as the Firebolt rose high into the air, her hair whipped back from her face. It turned at her lightest touch and she almost laughed out loud with the sheer joy of it. Her brothers flew towards her, but she turned the broom and sped away, hearing the complaints of the boys. 

"We don't stand a chance of catching you on that, Gin!" Ron shouted. 

Ginny laughed. For the next few minutes she flew about, feeling her worries lift- her fears over Voldemort's return and her dread that Harry would never like her in more than a brotherly way. She glanced down a saw him watching her, and her heart jumped.

Eventually, Ginny began descending. As she came closer to the ground, she saw that Harry was smiling at her. It was such a warm smile, such a true, honest smile.

Perhaps it was because she hadn't flown for a long time, and certainly never on a broom as good as the Firebolt, perhaps it was because she descended too fast, or perhaps it was Harry's smile, but whatever the reason, Ginny suddenly felt very faint. She swallowed hard and clutched the broom handle as tightly as she could, still descending, but the dizziness overcame her and Ginny felt herself slipping sideways and falling from the broom. Blackness overcame her a second before she hit the ground. 

***

"Ginny," someone was saying urgently. "Ginny!" 

Strong arms were holding her, shaking her very gently. Her head hurt very much, but she opened her eyes, slowly, to see a pair of bright green eyes, filled with concern. Her vision cleared and she made out Harry's worried face. He was sitting on the grass, holding her in his arms. Her brothers crouched around her, their faces very pale underneath their freckles. 

"What happened?" Ginny asked, her voice barely more than a whisper. 

"You fainted, or something," Fred said, "and fell. It was a good thing you were pretty close to the ground."

"My head hurts,"

"That's what you hit on the ground," George explained, his face still pale. "You don't have any broken bones, though. We'd better get you back to the house."

Harry was still holding her against himself, and Ginny felt her face grow warm. He looked so concerned…but of course he would. It didn't mean anything, she reminded herself. 

Something occurred to her suddenly, and she opened her eyes wide. 

"Your broomstick!" she gasped.

"It's okay," Harry reassured her quickly. "Fred got it." He nodded towards where the Firebolt lay on the grass, and got to his feet, still holding Ginny. Carrying her, he began to walk towards the house. 

"D'you want me to take her, Harry?" Ron asked, as George picked up the Firebolt. 

"No, it's okay. I've got her," Harry replied. "It's okay, Ginny. We'll be there in a minute."

Ginny nodded, gazing up at his face as he carried her, warm and safe, in his arms. Suddenly, the good feeling inside her was replaced by humiliation. What an idiot she must have seemed, fainting and falling from the broomstick! She closed her eyes in shame, unable to look at Harry. 

A/N: To be continued, soon. I hope you like my first attempt at Harry Potter fanfiction. Ginny has always been my favourite character, as I feel I can truly identify with her. I will welcome any reviews- but please, try to keep any criticism constructive. If you hate my story, that's your opinion, but I don't like flaming.


	2. Diary Confessions

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Disclaimer: All characters, places, etc etc, belong to the wonderful JK Rowling.

A/N: Thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews for Chapter One! :-)

Chapter Two- Diary Confessions 

Ginny lay in her bed that night with a terrible headache and a mind that refused to shut down and go to sleep. Harry had carried her all the way back to the house, where they had been met by a frantic Mrs Weasley setting out with a first-aid kit- she had seen Ginny's hand pointing to 'hurt' on the family clock. Ginny had been put to bed at once and cared for by her worried mother for the rest of the day. The boys had all come in to see her several times- including Harry. She blushed again as she remembered how her heart had jumped as he'd come through the door.

"Hey, Ginny! Are you feeling any better?" he'd asked, coming to stand by her bed. Ginny had nodded, willing the hot feeling in her cheeks to disappear. She'd lost any battle with the blushing when Harry had actually sat next to her on the bed. _Harry Potter is sitting on my bed, _she'd thought. _We are alone in my bedroom._

Harry had then reached out and gently smoothed the hair away from one side of her face to examine her bruise, his eyes full of concern- _brotherly concern_, she'd reminded herself. _Brotherly concern_. Ginny had stayed completely still until his hand had left her face. 

After a minute, he'd gotten to his feet again.

"Well, see you later. I hope you feel better soon." And he'd left. 

Now, alone in her dark room as the rest of the house slept, Ginny reached up with one hand, resting it on the place where Harry had touched. She sighed, then pushed away the covers and sat up, slowly, wincing as her head throbbed painfully. She slid one hand under her mattress, pulled out her diary and went to sit by the window, where she could see by the bright moonlight that streamed into her room through the open curtains. 

She opened her diary, dipped her quill into a pot of green ink, and began to write. 

_Dear Diary, _

_Something terrible, but good at the same time happened today. Firstly, Harry turned up at breakfast time. He's here for the two weeks until school goes back. That was good, but as usual I can't stop blushing and making a fool of myself. I must look like I'm on fire, permanently, with my red hair and red face. _

_Anyway, after breakfast we all went outside to do some flying, and Harry let me have a go on his Firebolt. It was wonderful, Diary, but then, as I was descending, he smiled at me in such a lovely way that I got all dizzy and fell off the broomstick. I hit my head on the ground, and it still hurts, even though Mum's given me all sorts of potions for it. I must have looked like such an idiot, Diary! Here's Harry Potter, Seeker for Gryffindor, best flier in the whole school, and here's Ginny Weasley, who can't even stay on a broomstick! But when I woke up, Harry was holding me, and I've never felt safer in my life, Diary. He carried me back to the house, too, and came to visit me in my room. He actually put his hand on my face, and brushed my hair away, to look at the bruise. _

_I'm so stupid, Diary! So stupid! Why can't I ever stop thinking about Harry? I'm sure he knows- well, he thinks I've got some silly little crush on the Great Harry Potter, that's for sure. And at first, it was that. But now, now it's a lot deeper. I just want to be with Harry, and make him smile, and have him make me smile. It's not fair, Diary. There are so many reasons why I should stop liking him- loving him. For one thing, he likes Cho Chang. She's so pretty, and smart. And she can fly. Not like me. I know Cho is very upset over Cedric's death, but in time, I can just see her falling for Harry. Why wouldn't she?_

_And then there's Ron. Ron is Harry's best friend, and he'd be so angry at Harry if anything happened. Ron- like all my brothers- is so protective of me. _

_And that's what Harry is! Protective, in a brotherly way! It's not fair! I like having him here, but I always make such an idiot of myself and in a way it's much easier being at school, where I can just watch him from a distance. _

_But this is stupid, Diary- you know all of this already. I've written it a thousand times before. So I'm going to try and go to sleep. _

_Love, Ginny._

_PS I want to tell him how I feel. But I won't. I won't. It would just embarrass us both._

_ _

Ginny sighed and closed her diary, but she continued to sit by the window, gazing out at the night. She sat there for perhaps half an hour before she crawled beneath her blankets again and closed her eyes. Tears shone on her cheeks in the moonlight, but she wiped them away and pulled the covers over her head. 

***

The next morning, Ginny went down to breakfast early to find the kitchen empty of everyone but her mother. 

"Hi, Mum," she said quietly, sitting down at the table. Her mother turned from the sink, holding her wand. 

"Good morning, darling. How are you feeling?" Mrs Weasley asked, crossing the kitchen to examine her daughter. 

"Better. It still hurts, but only a little,"

"Yes, I think you're all right now. That bruise should fade soon. You were very lucky, Ginny. It would be best, I think, not to go on the Firebolt again. It was probably a little too fast after Ron's Shooting Star."

"Yes." Ginny accepted a glass of water from her mother. 

"You're up early this morning," Mrs Weasley said, returning to the sink.

"I didn't sleep very well last night," Ginny said. Her mother opened the cupboard with a flick of her wand and summoned a stack of bowls. Flicking her wand again, she set the bowls out on the table and began to ladle porridge into them. 

Ginny heard footsteps on the stairs, and a moment later, Harry and Ron clattered into the kitchen. Pigwidgeon, Ron's tiny owl, was perched on Ron's shoulder, hooting happily. 

"Oh, hi Gin!" Ron said. "Feeling better?" He grabbed a bowl of porridge and sat down at the table. 

"Yeah, how are you feeling?" Harry asked. 

"Better," Ginny murmured, looking at the table. With a flurry of small wings, Pigwidgeon landed on her shoulder and began nibbling at her ear. "Ow! Stop it, Pigwidgeon!" she said. He jumped up and down with excitement, hooting loudly. 

"Why is he so excited this morning?" Harry asked, spooning porridge into his mouth. Ron shrugged as Mrs Weasley left the kitchen to call the others to breakfast. 

"Dunno. Maybe he's got too much energy. I haven't sent him with a letter for ages. He's being punished for clawing my Chudley Cannons hat. I guess the punishment's gone on long enough, though."

"Send him with one to Hermione," Harry suggested. "Maybe she can meet us at Diagon Alley next week."

"I- I've been writing to her," Ron said, his face turning pink. "But I've been using Errol. Since Pig was being punished and Percy took Hermes with him, I had to use that useless old featherbag."

"It's _Pigwidgeon_, Ron!" Ginny said. "Not Pig!"

"Whatever," Ron said. Pigwidgeon flew back to his shoulder and hooted into his ear.

At that moment, something grey flew through the window and landed in Ron's bowl of porridge, spattering his face and hair. Ron swore, wiping porridge off his face with one hand and pulling Errol, the Weasley's old owl, out of his bowl with the other. 

"He's got a letter from Hermione," he said, pulling a soggy piece of parchment off Errol's leg and dropping the unconscious owl on the table. He wiped the parchment on a dishcloth and opened it, as Mrs Weasley entered the kitchen again, followed by her husband and the twins. Mr Weasley gave a hurried good morning to the others, kissed his wife and left. 

"Where's Dad going?" Ginny asked. 

"The Ministry," Mrs Weasley sighed, pouring Mr Weasley's porridge into Errol's food tray and putting the tray and the owl into the cage that stood in one corner of the kitchen. "Apparently Dedalus Diggle's been messing about with Muggle artefacts again- your father's going to be very busy this morning." She sighed again before sitting down to eat her own breakfast. 

Ron put down Hermione's letter and looked up. 

"Hermione's going to meet us at Diagon Alley next Friday," he reported. 

"So did she end up visiting Krum, or not?" Harry asked. Ginny watched as he absent-mindedly ran a hand through his hair. Again, she had an urge to tidy it for him. 

"Um, no," Ron said.. "She- she decided not to."

Ginny smiled to herself as he blushed again. Perhaps Ron was finally accepting that his feelings for Hermione went slighter deeper than those of friendship. She'd secretly thought so for a long time. 

She glanced at Harry again. If only he would feel that way about her…

"Right," Mrs Weasley said once breakfast had been cleared away. "Why don't you lot go and pick some blackberries this morning? It's a lovely day. I want to make some apple and blackberry pies."

"Yum!" Ron got to his feet. "What do you say, Harry?"

"Count me in," Harry said, grinning. "Sounds like fun."

"Just wait 'till you taste Mum's pie…" Ron moaned and rubbed his stomach. "You coming, Ginny?"

"All right," She didn't have anything better to do, after all. She'd just have to concentrate extra hard not to make a fool of herself in front of Harry again.

"Well, the pies sound good, but we're busy this morning," George said. "Working on something up in our room."

"Yeah, see you guys later." Fred said, getting up. Mrs Weasley looked faintly suspicious, but she let them go without questions. 

"All right, then," she said, pulling three buckets from a cupboard. "Harry and Ron, I want you to keep an eye on Ginny."

"Mum!" Ginny said, embarrassed. "I'm okay now!"

"Well, be that as it may, but you did have a nasty bump and I don't want you getting too tired. All right, boys?"

Harry and Ron nodded, each taking a bucket, and soon the three of them were setting out across the common, the early morning sun warm upon their backs. Before too long, they came to a large blackberry patch and began picking, avoiding the long, thorny brambles as best they could. 

"Mmm…" Harry popped a juicy berry into his mouth, closing his eyes. "These are good." Ginny watched him, smiling, until he opened his eyes again and caught her gaze. He smiled, but she quickly tore her eyes away and continued picking.

"Put some in the bucket, Potter!" Ron grinned, tossing a berry at Harry. It bounced off his forehead, leaving a purple juice-mark behind.

"Hey!" Harry threw a berry at Ron, striking him in the nose. The two began hurling berries at each other. Ginny squealed and backed away. 

"Stop it, you two, stop it, you're wasting all the berries!" she shouted, as a wet purple handful landed in Ron's hair. They ignored her and continued throwing berries at each other, laughing and shouting false insults. Their faces were almost completely purple with berry juice.

"Stop it!" Ginny repeated. "You're wasting them all!" 

"Oh, there's plenty more, Gin!" Ron shouted, and with that he threw a handful directly at Ginny. The handful hit her directly in the face, and she screamed, stumbled, and nearly. 

_"I'll get you for that, Ronald Weasley!"_

"Oh, no you won't, Virginia!" Ron roared, and Ginny realised that the boys had ceased throwing berries at each other and were now advancing towards her menacingly, their hands full of pulpy purple goo. Ginny screamed and turned to run. Harry and Ron chased her, pelting her with berries. They were much faster than she, and before long Ron caught the back of her top and forced her to a halt. The boys exchanged grins and simultaneously rubbed their remaining berries into Ginny's hair. Then they doubled up with laughter. Ginny wiped purple juice from her face and pushed Ron, hard. He crashed into Harry and they both fell to the ground, still laughing.

"Oh, this is disgusting!" Ginny said, trying unsuccessfully to pick bits of blackberry out of her hair. "Mum's going to be very cross, you know."

This seemed to sober the boys slightly, and they both managed to get to their feet. Harry took off his glasses and tried to find a clean patch on his jumper to wipe them on. 

"Come on," Ron said, his teeth gleaming whitely in his purple face. "We'd better keep picking." He tipped the contents of Harry's and Ginny's buckets into his own, which nearly filled it, and picked it up. "I'm going to run this back to the house so Mum can get started on her pies!" He smiled in blissful anticipation. 

"But what'll Mum say when she sees you?" Ginny asked.

"She won't," Ron said. "I'll leave it on the doorstep and knock on the door." He set off, briskly.

Ginny felt very self-conscious, aware that she and Harry were now alone. She began to pick blackberries quickly. Harry did the same, and for a moment they worked silently. 

"Well, that was pretty fun, wasn't it?" Harry said after a moment, breaking the silence. "I can't say I've ever had a blackberry fight before."

"Me neither," Ginny said, dropping several berries into her bucket. "I feel very sticky, though."

"Yeah, me too." Harry looked up, and reached out his hand. "Hang on- you've got a huge clump of berry stuck in your hair." Ginny stood very still as Harry gently picked the clump out. "You're all purple," he smiled.

"So are you." She noticed a chunk of blackberry sticking to his forehead. Harry noticed where she was looking and smiled. 

"What? Do I have a clump, too?"

"Yes."

"Can you get it out for me?"

"All right."

Ginny's hand trembled slightly as she reached out and removed the berry. It was stuck right over his lightening-shaped scar. She started to draw her hand away, but suddenly Harry's hand came up and caught her own. She stared at him in shock. He looked right back at her, his eyes very green in his purple-streaked face as he slowly lowered their joined hands. He did not let go, and Ginny trembled. What was happening? Before she knew what was she was doing, her tongue had moved of its own accord and words were coming from her mouth.

"Harry," she breathed. "I- I have to tell you something."

"What?" he said, softly, the expression on his face unreadable. Ginny was filled with sudden terror. What if- what if she was just misunderstanding this all? Was she about to tell Harry that she loved him? What if he just- turned away, or laughed it off, or something equally horrible? She couldn't do this. He didn't return the feeling. She knew that. _But why is he holding your hand? _a little voice whispered. She ignored it.

Ginny pulled her hand away from his. 

"Nothing." she said, turning away. "It doesn't matter."

"Ginny…" he said. 

"It doesn't matter," she repeated, glad he could not see her face, which was burning red. She began picking berries again, and a moment later Harry did the same. 

A/N Don't you just _love _cliffhangers? I know, I know. I'll get Chapter Three up as soon as I can. Keep those reviews coming! 

__


	3. Avoiding the Truth

Disclaimer: All characters, places, etc etc belong to the legend that is JK Rowling

Disclaimer: All characters, places, etc etc belong to the legend that is JK Rowling. I don't own her characters or make any money from them. I just have fun with them. 

Chapter Three- Avoiding the Truth 

** **

For the next few days, Ginny avoided Harry as much as she could. She saw him at mealtimes, of course, but she declined any further invitations to practice flying with the boys, and spent most of her time in her room, writing in her diary. She felt extremely confused. 

_Dear Diary, _

_It's Monday and I've spent the morning in my room again. I think Mum's getting worried about me. She tried to convince me to go blackberry picking with the boys again, as long as we promised not to have a berry fight this time- it took several very strong Cleaning Spells to get the juice off- but there's no way I'm going with them again. I'm so confused, Diary. What did it mean? Why did Harry hold my hand like that, and look at me in that way? Does it mean that he…likes me? Does he see me as something more than just Ron's little sister? Sometimes, when I see him at mealtimes, I look up and he's watching me. It used to be the other way around and I don't know what it means. _

_No, I'm being stupid again, Diary! Whatever it means, it doesn't mean THAT. He's probably just watching me because he can't believe how clumsy and stupid I am. There is no way he likes me, Diary. I've got to accept that. But I can't deny something has changed-and I can't help avoiding him. I can't believe I almost told him!It's-_

_ _

"Ginny! It's nearly lunchtime, darling!" Mrs Weasley called. Ginny accidentally blotted the page with her quill, but closed the diary nevertheless and shoved it under her mattress. She walked down the stairs to find her mother alone in the kitchen, checking on a steak and kidney pie that was baking in the oven. Ginny sat herself at the kitchen table and dropped her head onto her hand. Mrs Weasley glanced over at her. 

"Ginny, I wish you'd tell me what the matter is," she said. "Are you sure you feel all right? Maybe you need some Pepper-Up Potion. I could ask Dad to get some."

"No," Ginny shook her head, "I don't need any Pepper-Up. I just- I guess I'm feeling a little lonely. I know Fred, George, and Ron all love me, but there's no getting around the fact that they're all boys and I'm a girl. I can't help but feel out of things when I'm with them."

"And Harry?"

Ginny glanced up, to find her mother looking at her in a very shrewd and direct way. A blush rose in Ginny's cheeks.

"I- I-" she stammered. Her mother smiled gently. 

"It's all right, Ginny. I know what it feels like, to have feelings for a boy and to have them pay you little or no attention. As you know, your father and I were at Hogwarts together, but it wasn't until our sixth year that he finally took notice of me- and I'd liked him since our first year! It was very frustrating. I resigned myself to the fact that he'd never like me, but I couldn't stop myself liking _him._ But it did happen, darling. I just had to wait."

"I-I didn't know that you realised about-"

"Your feelings for Harry? I'm your mother, Ginny. Mothers know these things about their daughters- and since I only have the one daughter I can pay a lot of attention to you."

"Well, Dad may have liked you in the end, but Harry's _never _going to like me," Ginny said. "To him, I'm just the little sister of his best friend. Just little Ginny, someone to be friendly to, someone in Gryffindor House, someone who he probably sees as another Colin Creevey- a fan."

"I wouldn't be so sure, darling," Mrs Weasley took the steaming pie out of the oven and set it at the table. "I have seen him looking at you. And he never laughs if you accidentally knock something over-"

Ginny burst into tears. She jumped up, knocking her chair over, and ran towards the front door. 

"Ginny! Wait!" her mother said in concern, but Ginny pulled the door open and ran outside, almost colliding with the boys who were trooping inside, carrying their brooms. They all looked very startled as Ginny ploughed through them, her face streaked with tears. Ron called her name, but she ignored him and kept running. She ran through the garden until she reached a secluded corner, shielded from common view by a tree and several bushes. It was Ginny's favourite place; a place she often went to read or think or draw. But now, she flung herself on the grass, sobbing. She didn't even know exactly what it was that she was crying about, only that she felt utterly miserable.

She heard her mother calling her name and stifled her sobs, lying still on the grass. 

"Ginny! Please come back, darling. It's lunch-time. Come on!" Mrs Weasley called, but Ginny did not move. Eventually, her mother stopped calling and Ginny heard the door close again. 

For a time, she lay still, but eventually she sat up and wiped her eyes. She leant against the tree and stared up at the blue, cloudless sky. It was a beautiful day, but the weather was the furthest thing from Ginny's mind. She thought instead of bright green eyes and tangled black hair, a smile that made her heart jump…

Suddenly, Ginny was hit by one of her more embarrassing memories. She had a flash of a dwarf sitting atop Harry's ankles, singing, while a crowd of students snickered…

_"His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad, his hair is as dark as a blackboard, I wish he was mine, he's really divine, the hero who conquered the Dark Lord…."_

__Ginny covered her face at the memory. How could she have _done _that? _I wish he was mine, he's really divine, the hero who conquered the Dark Lord_- surely, if Harry knew for certain that she had sent that Valentine, that 'hero' line would have made him think that she only liked him because he was famous. But that wasn't the case. She didn't, she-

"Ginny?"

Ginny jumped violently, and let out a little squeal. She had been so caught up in the humiliating memory that she hadn't heard footsteps approaching. She spun about to see Harry standing on the other side of one of the bushes, looking at her. Why was he here? Ginny stayed still, looking up at him. 

"I finished lunch first, and your mum asked me to come and look for you," Harry said, walking around the bush and kneeling beside her. "Are you okay?"

_I'm going to kill my mother, _Ginny thought. She didn't say that aloud, however. She merely nodded, her eyes on the ground.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked quietly. "You looked pretty upset before."

Ginny nodded again. 

"Is there anything I can do?" Harry asked. "You can tell me. I'm your friend, remember?"

To Ginny's extreme embarrassment, she burst into tears again before she could stop herself. She buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking. 

"Hey," Harry touched her shoulder. "Come on." He sounded a little uncertain, as if unsure of how to cope with crying girls. "Ginny?" _Go away. _Ginny continued to cry, her face still in her hands. Harry moved closer to her, pulled her hands away, and took her in his arms in a hug. This made Ginny cry harder. She buried her face in Harry's strong shoulder, feeling his arms wrapped tightly around her. He was rocking her back and forth ever so slightly, one hand gently stroking her hair. 

To be held, so tight and securely…Despite her tears, Ginny could not help but feel warm and safe. The loneliness she so often felt subsided a little, as she realised that she had unconsciously longed to be held like this for a very long time. And by Harry…

Eventually, Ginny's sobs subsided and Harry released her. She avoided his eyes as she self-consciously wiped her eyes, but she knew he was looking at her. He reached out, and gently smoothed a tear from her cheek. Ginny kept her eyes downcast. Harry was sitting so close, and she felt inexplicably frightened, now that the tears and sorrow had passed. Not knowing what else to do, she got to her feet. Harry did the same, and they began walking back to the house, Ginny still not looking at him. 

Just before they reached the door, Ginny turned, and forced herself to meet Harry's eyes. 

"Thank you," she said, very softly. Harry smiled at her.

"That's all right," he said. "Just remember, if you ever need to talk, I'm a good listener. Come on. Your mum was saving some lunch for you."

A/N Sorry it took me a while to get this chapter up, but I haven't had much time lately. Chapter Four is coming soon…please keep reading and reviewing! I do really appreciate your reviews. I know things are happening slowly between Harry and Ginny…but I prefer it that way. Not a lot happened in this chapter, I know, and it's a bit shorter than the others, but as I said I've been really pressed for time lately and this was the best I could do. =)


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